Evening Update 08 August

The official Alpes-Maritimes flag is being flown at half-mast today as a sign of respect for the Mayor of Signes who was buried this afternoon.  The 76 year-old died after being run over following an argument over illegal tipping. It’s said Mayor Michel saw two men dumping rubble and asked them to reload it. They did but as they drove off Michel was hit and died of his injuries. The driver of the van is under formal investigation and could face manslaughter charges.

Firefighters in Aix-en-Provence, responding to an emergency call where someone was threatening to jump from a fourth floor window, were stunned to find the distressed person was just six years old. The little boy shouted that he wanted to jump because he was alone. Firefighters eventually made it into the apartment and recused him. His mother, who was out of the city at the time, is helping police with enquiries.

People and business’s across the Alpes Maritimes are being asked to save water to avoid future shortages. Restrictions have been put in place in 81 regions across France to prevent drought, with 38 departments saying they are at crisis point.

A major search is underway in Malaysia for the daughter of a Franco-Irish couple. They fear the 15 year-old girl was abducted from her room at a holiday resort outside Kuala Lumpur. In the fifth day of the hunt for the teenager, officials have been playing recordings of Nora Quoirin's mother over megaphones, while Tribes-people specialised in tracking also joined the search team.

BUSINESS

The number of super-rich non-domiciled taxpayers in the UK has dropped over 20% in the last year, leading to a loss of at least £2bn in tax revenue.

‘Non-doms’ are wealthy residents whose permanent home is outside of the UK. With their status, they can pay a levy of between £30,000 and £60,000, which allows them to pay no tax on income or capital gains outside of the state. In the last year 20,000 non-doms have abandoned the country citing Brexit and the prospect of a Labour government as reasons for leaving.

SPORT

Soccer - Inter Milan have reached an agreement with Manchester United to sign striker Romelu Lukaku for a fee that could rise to €80m. Lukaku's agent flew into London yesterday in an attempt to resolve Lukaku's future, then last night posted an Instagram photo of both on them on board a private jet with the caption: "Ready to take off. Direction Milano."

Arsenal have agreed an £8m deal with Chelsea to sign defender David Luiz on a two-year contract. The Brazilian centre-back will have a medical at Arsenal later today.

Tottenham's proposed move for Paulo Dy-bala is off after Juventus decided not to sell the 25-year-old forward. Manchester United ended their talks with the Argentine earlier this month because of his wage demands.

Rugby - Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt has named an experimental line-up for his side's first World Cup warm-up match against Italy. Rhys Ruddock captains the side from the back row, while Dave Kearney returns to the fold, two years after his last cap. Schmidt will cut 12 players from his 43-man squad before the tournament in Japan.